Steve Carell Attached to Star in Looney Tunes Spinoff Based on the Acme Corporation

Here's some news we never expect to report today... Warner Bros. is planning a spinoff of their classic Looney Tunes franchise that would be based on Acme Corp. - the company which Wile E. Coyote and others use to buy their anvils, dynamite and earthquake pills - and would Steve Carell. And, before you ask, no, there won't actually be any Looney Tunes characters in the movie. Huh?

THR reports that Ashley Miller and Zack Stentz, who last wrote 'X-Men: Days of Future Past', are currently writing the script for directors Glenn Ficarra and John Requa (who directed Carell in 'Crazy Stupid Love'). The film, which would take place in the Acme warehouse, is described as "a live-action CG hybrid featuring the many outlandish devices of the company in a tone that recalls the Amblin pics of the 1980s or a Men in Black-style movie." We should repeat that there won't be any actual Looney Tunes characters in the movie, but, as all good studio movies are wont to do these days, it's expected to "launch a franchise."

It's unclear what character Carell (who is widely expected to be nominated for his first Oscar later this year for his work in 'Foxcatcher') would play in this film, but we'd expect some kind of CEO type. We're guessing if it's a CG hybrid, there will probably be new characters introduced, but...why introduce new characters when you have Bugs Bunny, Daffy Duck, Wile E. Coyote and the like?

Now, before we go too crazy, we should note that both Ficarra and Requa are part of the newly-installed Warner Bros. Animation Brain Trust, which also includes Nicholas Stoller ('Neighbors') and Phil Lord and Chris Miller ('The LEGO Movie'). So, to immediately dismiss this as a terrible idea (which, trust me, we are tempted to do), may be a bit rash. It wouldn't been easy to dismiss a movie about LEGOs, but somehow that's one of the biggest and best movies of the year so far. Maybe Ficarra and Requa could do the same here.